KMT Policy Committee executive director and party spokesman Alex Tsai (蔡正元) yesterday again attacked former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), comparing him with former KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰), who Tsai said “is a good example of a retired chairman who should be followed.”
Tsai said on Facebook that after Ma defeated then-legislative speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) in the KMT’s 2005 chairmanship election, “he never consulted his predecessor Lien Chan on party or state affairs.”
“Lien never [after he retired as chair] publicly ‘presented his guidance’ to Ma,” Tsai added. “Nor did Lien ever gather a table of [KMT leaders] and openly ‘give directives’ to Ma. There was also no ‘Lien’s office’ that ever released statements instructing Ma how to do things.”
Analysts said that Tsai is needling Ma over his reiteration of the “one China, different interpretations” formula during a gathering of KMT leaders which included KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), who has called for “one China,” without mentioning “different interpretations” saying it would “further” the so-called “1992 consensus.”
The “1992 consensus” — a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese government that both sides acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Ma’s office has also issued press releases saying that the “1992 consensus” and “one China, different interpretations” represent both a cross-strait consensus and consensus within Taiwan, and rebutted the claims of Tsai and Hung that “unification” is mentioned in the “1992 consensus.”
Tsai on Tuesday said there are four principles that form the core of the “1992 consensus,” and they are the “one China” principle, that both sides of the Taiwan Strait are seeking unification of the country, “one China, with different interpretations” and that political disputes should be suspended when practical affairs are being negotiated.
Ma’s office as of press time last night had not responded to Tsai’s Facebook post, but “clarified” that Ma would not be running for the chairmanship of the KMT, in contradiction with media reports that Ma was planning to bid for the position next year in order to replace Hung.
Additional Reporting by Shih Hsiao-kuang
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